Aam Aadmi Party falling 'prey to personality cult': Yogendra Yadav

NEW DELHI: Reeling under electoral debacle, Aam Aadmi Party on Friday appeared split down the middle with senior leader Yogendra Yadav attacking Arvind Kejriwal while the party initiated moves to bring back Shazia Ilmi who had quit criticising the "coterie" around Kejriwal.

The party leadership came under attack at a meeting of the national executive, attended by leaders from across the country, to discuss the future course of action after its rout. Rift in the party's top leadership emerged after exchange of letters between Yogendra Yadav and Manish Sisodia.

Yadav, known to be a key strategist, had written to the Political Affairs Committee after his resignation from it charging the party with "falling prey to personality cult" and that the decisions taken reflected the wishes of the party chief. He described Kejriwal as a 'supremo', and not a leader.

"There is a widespread perception among workers and sympathisers as well as external observers that the party is falling prey to the disease of personality cult that afflicts all political parties in the country," Yadav said in his letter.

"Major decisions of the party appear to, and indeed do, reflect wishes of one person; when he changes his mind, the party changes its course of action; proximity to the leader comes to substitute for organisational roles and responsibilities. Since all the decisions and successes are credited to one person, all the blame also begins to accumulate at the doors of one person," Yadav said.

"There is no one who doubts that Arvind bhai is the undisputed leader within the party. He has richly earned this stature and we would not be where we are without his leadership. But there is a difference between a leader and a supremo. Love and affection for a leader often turns into a personality cult that can damage an organisation and the leader himself. This is what appears to be happening to our party," Yadav said.

Kejriwal's aide Manish Sisodia hit back at Yadav accusing him of targeting Kejriwal and making internal matters public. "When you wanted to become Haryana in-charge and wanted to be projected as the CM candidate despite opposition from other PAC members, Arvind backed you. At that time, he was democratic (for you). The state of affairs of the party in Haryana is in a shambles," Sisodia said.